The list here highlights classic rock groups that have had the remarkable account of the most changes during their career. Below are the Top 12 Classic Rock Bands With the Highest Total Members:
AC/DC
In 1974 the Young brothers moved to Melbourne, where they joined drummer Phil Rudd and bassist Mark Evans. They were joined as a singer by Bon Scott, who had previously participated in some pop bands. In addition, Scott brought an aggressive, misfit-boy style to the band that accompanied them throughout their career. In this way, with the band already formed, they made a tour of Australia, beginning to work on what would be their first album.
King Crimson
It is undoubted and indisputable that King Crimson has been one of the most influential bands, and the pioneers of Progressive Rock of all time. The band of the late 60s and early 70s helped spread this genre, and other bands follow in their footsteps. Like many other bands, King Crimson has evolved throughout history, although there has always been a common element in all their works, the figure of the charismatic guitarist and leader of the band Robert Fripp (although he has never considered himself as such. ).
Blue Öyster Cult
In the hard rock scene, Blue Oyster Cult has represented a self-reliant entity since its debut. The courageous choice of preferring a more intelligent than instinctive approach to music (a choice that has many times led them to be accused of excessive coldness), has surely been the cause of their massive lack of success. The group, which nevertheless in America has had some moments of great notoriety and is still esteemed today, could have reached a much wider audience if the latter had understood their efforts, beyond the simple musical proposal and had not shown the usual prejudices towards heavy metal words. Originally from New York, in 1967 they moved under the name of Cows. The line-up included three future Blue Oyster Cult, precisely Albert Bouchard (drums), Allen Lanier (keyboards), and Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser (guitar); turned into Soft White Underbelly, they played opening act for Jeff Beck and recorded albums that were never released. A few months later they recruited a new vocalist, Eric Bloom, a mysterious character who always wore dark glasses. The group’s sound was strongly influenced by the acid-psychedelic movement that was in vogue at the time. They changed their name for the third time, now the Stalk Forrest Group and things were better, thanks to the support of Sandy Pearlman and Richard Meltzer, two notorious music journalists. Then they played the decisive card and, abandoning doubts and hesitations, they went on to a brutal and aggressive sound.
Jethro Tull
Jethro Tull is the name of an original Scottish progressive rock band, which began its journey in 1968 and which, since then, has worked uninterruptedly until today, being, after Rolling Stones (1962) and Le Orme (1966) ), among others, one of the oldest rock groups still active. The first formation was integrated by Ian Anderson (voice, flute, and acoustic guitar), Glenn Cornick (bass), Clive Bunker (drums), and Mick Abrahams (electric guitar). The debut album was This Was. Soon after, Mick Abrahams parted ways with the group and was replaced by Martin Lancelot Barre, who has been part of the group ever since. The music, framed in progressive rock, constitutes a very original mix of blues, English folk, and hard rock, with touches of Baroque music, English medieval music, and even Renaissance music. The group also develops a branch dedicated to original acoustic songs that are difficult to classify. In its sound, Ian Anderson’s flute stands out in a particular way, played in a masterful way, which has been and continues to be one of the unmistakable characteristics of the band, as well as the torn sound of Martin Barre’s electric guitar, finely intertwined with that of Anderson’s flute.
Megadeth
Curiously, Mustaine fought all his life to surpass his peers in Metallica and that was the engine that led him to make another great band such as Megadeth, which managed to release brilliant albums during the 90s and has continued on the path, despite various member changes, layoffs, deaths, and changes of management.
Black Sabbath
It is a heavy metal music band formed in 1968 in Birmingham, England, initially composed of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward. It is considered one of the most influential bands in the history of Rock, they are also credited with the invention of heavy metal. The first to leave were the last to arrive, Dio and Apice made way for Ian Gillan (born August 19, 1945, in Chiswick, London) and Bill Ward, who returned to record “Born Again” (1983), a lazy work that again caused the departure of several of its members, with only guitarist Tony Iommi remaining as an original member. People like Glenn Hughes, Tony Martin, Bev Bevan, Eric Singer, Dave Spitz, Geoff Nichols, Cozy Powell, Terry Chimes, or Bobby Rondinelli entered the line-up throughout the 80s and 90s, leaving the Black Sabbath curriculum uneven. Records in which their metal sound was trivialized, highlighting works such as “The Eternal Idol” (1987) or “Headless Cross” (1989).
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Together with the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd is the most important group that southern rock has known, a musical style based on the emulsion of blues rock, country, boogie, honky-tonk, and rock’n’roll, and in a personal good look. that underlines its telluric-confederate roots, with a reinvigorating and playful purpose. The group consisted of singer/guitarist Ronnie VanZant (born January 15, 1948, in Jacksonville, Florida), guitarist Allen Collins (born July 19, 1952, in Jacksonville), and Gary Rossington (born December 4, 1952). 1951 in Jacksonville), bassist Leon Wilkeson (who replaced Larry Junstrom), keyboardist Billy Powell, and drummer Bob Burns. Misfortune struck the Lynyrd Skynyrd members again when, after releasing two albums with the Rossington Collins Band, Allen Collins was paralyzed in 1986 after a car accident that killed his girlfriend. Commemorating the ten years of the tragic accident that put an end to the band, Gary Rossington, Ed King, Leon Wilkeson, and Billy Powell returned to tour with the name of Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour, joining the band Ronnie’s younger brother, Johnny Van Zant and a third guitarist named Randall Hall.
The Cult
The Cult was one of the most profitable names in English rock of the 80s, influenced by both the Doors and AC / DC or Led Zeppelin, and with the talent of its composers, vocalist Ian Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy, they knew how to record three or four really great albums with rock, hard, psychedelic sound, good melodic treatment, and catchy choruses. The Cult dates back to the early 1980s, when Ian Astbury (born May 14, 1962, in Heswall, Chesire), after wandering around Scotland and Canada, accompanying his family with his father’s journey of destinies, A soldier in the British navy, he returned to England, specifically to the town of Bradford, to form a rock band that he called Southern Death Cult. The Southern Death Cult, with Astbury as lead singer, David “Buzz” Burrows as guitar, Barry Jepson as bassist, and Hap Quereshi as drums, used to make gothic music, first recorded on vinyl on the Situation Two label with the single “Fatman / Moya ”.
Quiet Riot
The Quiet Riot story began with vocalist Kevin DuBrow and guitarist Randy Rhoads, who formed a band in 1975 after failing with an initial project called Violet Fox, and completed their integration with bassist Kelli Garni and drummer Drew Forsyth. They filled the local scene with other bands of their time such as Van Halen, Sciter and London, the band thrilled audiences in the nightclubs of Los Angeles, but found it difficult to land a recording contract during the 70’s. Quiet Riot fell apart and DuBrow formed a new band with his own name “DuBrow”, although it was short lived. He then went on to work with various musicians over the next several years before signing with the independent label Pasha Records, reviving the Quiet Riot name, and entering the studio with new guitarist Carlos Cavazo and bassist Chuck Wright beginning work on a new record. . The year was 1982, and after his old colleague Sarzo left Ozzy, he left Wright, and brought in another friend, Frankie Banali, to take on the drums, thus completing the group for the sessions of what would come to be. the 1984 album “Metal Health”. The album that contained a version of the Slade group’s song, “Cum on Feel the Noize”, practically stormed the charts of the best albums in the United States, reaching number one, achieving five platinum discs during the first weeks. The unexpected event was not fully assimilated by the band, who found it quite difficult to deal with the sudden stardom and the problems that accompany it. Among the many vicissitudes of the band, the one with the greatest negative effect was the death of its founder and soul, Kevin DuBrow, who was found dead at his home in Las Vegas due to an accidental cocaine overdose.
Heart
Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson are the creative spark behind the hard rock group Heart, which reached its peak in the mid-1970s. In 1970, well into their younger years while in college, they decided to try their luck as professional musicians in separate directions: Nancy as a folk performer and Ann joining a boy group called White Heart. Heart enjoys an important place in music history as the first all-female hard rock band to achieve wide commercial popularity, thanks to its obvious musical variety. Rudas and without losing their femininity, they have cultivated an enduring career for more than three decades, without losing the focus that brought them together in the first place: creating and sharing music.
Whitesnake
In February 1977 David Coverdale and guitarist Micky Moody, who had collaborated with Coverdale on both of his solo albums, formed Whitesnake. The rest of the lineup included guitarist Bernie Marsden, bassist Neil Murray, drummer David Dowle, and keyboardist Brian Johnston (later replaced by PETE SOLLEY). In April of that same year, his first album Snakebite would be released under the name David Coverdale’s Whitesnake. Whitesnake’s first proper album would come out the same year, under the name Trouble. The keyboardist on the album was David Coverdale’s ex-partner in Deep Purple years, Jon Lord. Among the songs on the album, there would be classics like Take me with you, Trouble, Lie down and a good version of The Beatles Day Tripper song. Greater success would come with the 1979 album, Lovehunter, which contained songs such as Walking In The Shadow Of The Blues, Medicine Man, and the one that gives the album its name. Although the most memorable album of this time was undoubtedly Ready an ‘willing from 1980, in which drummer David Dowle would no longer be present; in his place enters another former Coverdale partner in Deep Purple: Ian Paice. With this album, they reached the top of the charts, with songs like Fool for your loving and Blindman.
Santana
One of the first great stars in the history of modern music who knew how to successfully fuse jazz, rock, psychedelia, and blues with rhythms of Latin origin was Carlos Santana, who with his band became one of the most original musical proposals emerged in the city of San Francisco at the end of the 60s. Young Carlos grew up in a very musical environment since his father played the violin in a mariachi group and began to imitate his father’s behavior while learning to strum the guitar from a very young age. Carlos loved traditional music inherited from his ancestors, but he was very interested in developing that sonic roots in the spectrum of rock, blues, and jazz, styles to which he was very attracted. In 1966 he formed the Santana Blues Band, a group that he had devised with singer and keyboardist Gregg Rolie. The pair were joined by bassist David Brown, drummer Bob Livingstone, and percussionist Marcus Malone. 1969 was a key year for the Santana Blues Band. They shortened their name to simply Santana, performed with great success at the popular Woodstock Festival and released their first official major album entitled “Santana” (1969), a splendid album that reached number 4 on the best-selling LP charts thanks to songs like “Soul Sacrifice”, “Evil Ways”, “Waiting” or “Jingo”. In the recording of this album and in Woodstock, Marcus Malone and Bob Livingstone were no longer in the formation, who was replaced in the drums and percussion work by Mike Caravello, Michael Shrieve, and José “Chepito” Areas, responsible for providing that Afro-Cuban aroma. so characteristic of his musical proposal.